Jacqueline Graif

Arts and Culture Correspondent

Photo Via Segal Centre for the Performing Arts

Certainly not your mother’s Titanic! Titanique; a show of great theatrical extravagance exploring queerness, québécois culture, and musical theatre is running from February 2nd through 16th at Montréal’s Segal Centre for the Performing Arts. Titanique originally previewed in Montréal back in October 2024 at the Segal Centre, and has made a return after running in Toronto from December 5th through January 19th. Wonderfully directed by Tye Blue and written by Marla Mindelle and Constantine Rousouli, the jukebox musical is a perfect showcase of all things related to Céline Dion. 

The show begins as an exhibition in a Titanic museum, where we are taken on a tour led by the effervescent Tour Guide (Christopher Ning). Suddenly, Céline Dion (Véronique Claveau) emerges, and tells her recollection of the Titanic disaster of 1912. The show moves into a spoof of the cult-classic film Titanic (1997) as ensemble members change from their modern museum-goer outfits into passengers of the R.M.S. Titanic. The musical is filled with show-stopping musical numbers, all songs sung by Céline Dion. Songs like “All By Myself”, “Because You Loved Me” and “My Heart Will Go On” were immersed into the plot of Titanic. The show concludes with Céline saying her voice saved everyone from the sinking of the Titanic; a wondrous tribute to the iconic singer.

Titanique (written by a duo of queer best friends) is a showcase of the common love for Céline exhibited through numerous references to LGBTQ+ culture. A whole sequence called “lip sync for your lifeboat” is done as an homage to the iconic lip sync dances in RuPaul’s Drag Race. The sequence even ends with a death-drop done by Jack (Seth Zosky) after he is called an “aging twink” by Rose’s mother, Ruth (Constant Bernard). The show even ends with the captain of the ship fanning himself with a pink fan that says “YAS”, a reference to slang used on the TV show. 

Céline Dion is a québécois icon, and Titanique has no shortage of the province’s iconography. Known québécois swear words like “tabarnak” and “câlisse” are thrown into the Montréal and Toronto productions. In the final scene, Céline reveals that after the Titanic sinks, Jack moves to Las Vegas and changes his name to René Angélil; the very Francophone name of Céline’s real husband. 

Not only did I appreciate this show, but so did the audience. A standing ovation was almost immediate during bows, possibly due to the large audience participation.  Titanique at the Segal Centre is a wondrous combination of queer and French Canadian culture, and is a must-see for its wonderful actors, production quality, and writing. As Céline’s sister, Claudette Dion, present at opening night said, “C’est Céline!”